Should I Go Pure?

The only two brushes I have ever used are the C&E EJ Best and a beautiful custom Super Silver Tip which I use for lathering creams. They're good and great brushes respectively, but I think I'm ready to graduate from the EJ Best which I use for soaps. The custom has a light bulb shape which is great for the rice bowl I use for lathering, a denser knot which really hogs lather which is a little annoying and silver tip bristles which are just heavenly really. I don't mind the Best Badger Brush at all. I find it almost as soft as the Silver Tip on my face, but it seems a bit too soft for the job of making lather from soaps.

I wonder if a Pure Badger Brush will work better on the soap bar and still retain enough softness to keep me pleased. As usual I'm looking around for THE right tool. Here's what I'm thinking; a quality brush should have a denser knot than the EJ budget line and also retain enough water to get good lather. I don't like making a ton of lather that I'm not going to use and I sometimes think my 24mm knots are too wide for face so a narrow knot should be best. I'm worried I won't like the Pure hairs though otherwise I would be happy dolling out for the good brush.

The Omega Pure Badgers look very nice, but it sounds like they're not as good as the boar bristles.
The Simpson's are a pretty penny, but I bet their knots are perfect.

Do my conclusions sound well, sound to you guys in the know?
From the pure brush users I'd like to know what brush you sue and why you like it?
Also, how different or similar in feel is your pure brush compared to some others that you've used?
What am I forgetting?

TIA

X

The Rooney 1/1 finest is a really great soap brush. Very dense 21mm knot that doesn't hog the lather, short loft, and stiff bristles that build lather quickly but with soft tips that rival a silvertip. They're not cheap, but when i got mine it pretty quickly displaced all my other brushes. I've been using it every day for the last three years now, and can't recommend it highly enough.

I don't know if it is a "pure" but what I have is a European Gray Plisson. It is a very nice brush, especially for soap. Good backbone and nice scrubbing action. My favorite soap brushes though are the stiffer silvertips, be they 2band simpsons or rooney finest. Same scrubbiness or even moreso, but the tips are soft. You get just enough scritchiness, but not prickly or scratchy like a pure or even the EJ best badger. I hope that makes sense.

If not for the smaller knot size you prefer, I'd say you would probably like the Heritage Stubby 2 that Padron has on the Classifieds for an excellent price. Not cheap, but you seem to stick to very few brushes, like you mention. It would be worth it, and is not hard to resell if you don't lke it.

lol, i was going to say that the finest is the other option, but costs quite a bit more.
rooney 3/1 is my daily choice and i've got just one more brush, which is a custom shavemac rebristled vintage handle.

Hi X,

I'm certainly no brush aficionado, but I really can recommend the silvertip brushes by Semogue (Portugal). I have had the opportunity to compare mine with a number of others in different grades of badger, and I find this brush hard to beat when it comes to backbone, massaging comfort and lather-ability. The price of these brushes is incredibly sweet. SRP member Leon sells them, and for what they cost, it hardly hurts to try.
Here's my original review:
http://straightrazorpalace.com/brush...silvertip.html

Kind regards,
Bart.

Don't discount boar--it's stiff and, if you get a good, untrimmed knot, it's smooth. And it only gets smoother over time. I'll never give up my Omega knots for badger...

I'd suggest you to look for a Semogue brush. Portuguese made, and they have had very good reviews on this forum. Our very own Leon sells them at his shop: Coming Soon...... Check them out. Plus, they are really very cheap!
My thoughts, only. I have a boar hair semogue brush and I'm very happy with it, though I am now preparing to teke the plunge into a nice badger brush...

Thanks everyone for the replies.

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Originally Posted by JimR

Don't discount boar--it's stiff and, if you get a good, untrimmed knot, it's smooth. And it only gets smoother over time. I'll never give up my Omega knots for badger...

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As smooth as a good untrimmed pure badger knot? Could it be better. I'm assuming that nearly all boar brushes have substantially more backbone than any reasonably similar badger I guess. I expect that. I expect that bristle brushes are like the Wilkinson Sword I see at the druggist, at least in hair strength. I can see how some might like that. I can sure see how a professional barber would like how it responds. If a gentleman shaver would prefer something else, I would show him a catalogue and talk up the silver tips. I can see how someone like you digs they way they respond too. I'm just sceptical that it might be me.

I generally, really like using my EJ Best. It's a bit loose and floppy for me though and I find the the handle a bit uncomfortable. If I want to change the floppiness I can do it two ways right? I can get a denser knot or I can get a stiffer hair. Or both.

Those Semogue brushes look like quite a pick. If the budget line functions as smoothly as the one the guy in the Portugese news vid about them I might have found my next brush. The last thing I want to do now is change up on a brush and end up with pretty much the same issues, too floppy. I certainly don't want new issues either. I'll have to contact leon. scottlp sells them here in Canada too. Hm. ...

I'm also looking at the Simpson BK4, the Beaufort that they sell at SRD. I'll bet it's a though brush, my son. Could the Semogue 2010 be that well packed?

X

PS Hey Jim,

How good are the Omega Pure Badger Brushes do you know? I think I read they don't hold water. How much water do they need to hold?!?!

Xman,

Have you considered the variable loft brush by Shavemac? It is supposed to be a pretty good little brush, and Mantic59 likes his quite a bit. You can adjust it for exactly what you're going for as far as floppiness, stiffness, or softness on a particular day. Supposed to be very high quality badger as well. Just a thought.

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Originally Posted by theworldover

Xman,

Have you considered the variable loft brush by Shavemac? It is supposed to be a pretty good little brush, and Mantic59 likes his quite a bit. You can adjust it for exactly what you're going for as far as floppiness, stiffness, or softness on a particular day. Supposed to be very high quality badger as well. Just a thought.

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I don't really like the handle. I think it's more brush than I need too. My Les Paul guitar has three split pickups and I can get a host of sounds, but I only really use two or three.

X

Hey X,

I have a handmade Vulfix pure badger, and it works great. I don't have a huge frame of reference as far as brushes go, but IMO it has a bit of stiffness that works well with soaps, yet is soft enough that creams lather really nicely too. I really don't see members posting about Vulfix brushes at all; really underrated if you ask me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by xman

Thanks everyone for the replies.


As smooth as a good untrimmed pure badger knot? Could it be better. I'm assuming that nearly all boar brushes have substantially more backbone than any reasonably similar badger I guess. I expect that. I expect that bristle brushes are like the Wilkinson Sword I see at the druggist, at least in hair strength. I can see how some might like that. I can sure see how a professional barber would like how it responds. If a gentleman shaver would prefer something else, I would show him a catalogue and talk up the silver tips. I can see how someone like you digs they way they respond too. I'm just sceptical that it might be me.

I generally, really like using my EJ Best. It's a bit loose and floppy for me though and I find the the handle a bit uncomfortable. If I want to change the floppiness I can do it two ways right? I can get a denser knot or I can get a stiffer hair. Or both.

{snip}

X

PS Hey Jim,

How good are the Omega Pure Badger Brushes do you know? I think I read they don't hold water. How much water do they need to hold?!?!

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First--Wellll, if you get a good, untrimmed boar, it will at first be a bit (A BIT) rougher than pure badger, but as the ends split it will become just as smooth. It IS stiff, there is no denying that, but it is not as stiff as say, the pre-vulfix Duke 3 I tried, nor as scrubby. For what its worth, the Vulfix brushes are supposedly a bit smoother/softer than the omegas--might be worth a try.

Second--I've never tried one, but the Omega Badgers all have reputations as somewhat loosely packed. I can't imagine they have too big a problem with water retention, though, as, well...Have you ever seen a brush that didn't hold water? I know that Giovanni Abrate, the Omega MAN, feels that the Omega pure badgers are the best around; and he does talk up the backbone. They do have some gorgeous handles, don't they?

Tell you what--try a Boar brush, either an Omega (try one from this page--the knots are all the same, and have a reputation as superb, and I think Paul Mayhew at connaught shaving has some in stock, he just hasn't got his webpage updated, or wait until Razor and Brush is back in business) or a Vulfix from Connaught shaving; he should have some new models with fantastic handles up soon.. Give it a month. If you don't like it, I'll buy it off you for full price. No harm, no foul.

Certainly cheaper than a new Badger!

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Originally Posted by JimR

Tell you what--try a Boar brush, either an Omega (try one from this page--the knots are all the same, and have a reputation as superb, and I think Paul Mayhew at connaught shaving has some in stock, he just hasn't got his webpage updated, or wait until Razor and Brush is back in business) or a Vulfix from Connaught shaving; he should have some new models with fantastic handles up soon.. Give it a month. If you don't like it, I'll buy it off you for full price. No harm, no foul.

Certainly cheaper than a new Badger!

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That's a mighty nice gesture, Jim.

Concerning the difference between boar and badger. In my limited experience, they don't even compare.
I used this Omega, from their professional line, for about a year:
http://www.omegabrush.com/english/da...5917115193.jpg

Then I got a small badger.
http://vintagescent.com/images/large...b_2015_LRG.jpg

It was an instant epiphany. Water retention in the badger is double of that in the boar. I only had one shaving soap by the time (by the brand Plisson) The lather the badger made was definitely in another class than what I ever got out of the boar. I'd always been skeptical about the "so-called" differences between boar and badger, but as soon as the badger touched my face, I could not longer deny the fact that badger really plays in a different class.

I regularly shave my wifes legs. In the beginning I used the boar brush for that, for the sake of still wanting to have a use for it. Last summer, while on vacation, I only had the badger with me. Next leg-shave, back home, I started lathering her legs with the boar brush. It took her less than 30 seconds to ask for "the other brush"...

I believe boar and badger compare as well as pork and beef. There's a big difference in "juiciness" between those two. I can see how some people can favor one over the other, and I can also see how some people may have equal preferences for both. But I can't see how anyone ever could serve one for the other.

Just my honest opinion, written in utmost respect for everything Jim wrote in this thread. I would take him up on his generous offer. You never know. But I do fear he might end up owning an extra Omega.

Best regards,
Bart.

Of course, this is all a matter of taste--and Bart is certainly not alone when he says that he simply enjoys his badger more (many people do), but I just don't. I've tried badger brushes (some of the best and some of the worst) and I just don't like anything about them as much as boar.

It's interesting...I used a small, no name badger for about a month before I got an Omega, and it was like the wool was pulled from my eyes. Since then, I've used a shavemac finest, a pre-vulfix D3, and my own silvertip badger and none of them were anywhere NEAR as effective nor as comfortable as my boar...The Shavemac and the D3 I downright hated. The thing is, boar and badger take a different touch; they're different tools, and respond in different ways. You MUST soak your boar in hot water before use, and you MUSTN'T shake it out too much if you're using soaps. That's it. No fussing at all with ratios, etc. Soak brush, drip it out (no shaking) and scrub the soap. With creams, it takes less water and you might need to dip the bristle tips oce or twice to get the water levels right, but it's just a wee bit different.


If you don't try it, X-Man, that's no sweat--just remember it's a real option. If you try and don't like it, that's great. Just don't let people tell you one is worse than the other, because it just ain't so.

And, if I do end up with another Omega, I surely won't mind it a bit. L'Ultima Setola loves company!

Speaking of which, you sitll have that lovely 20102 Bart? :D

P.S. X-man, "someone like you..." means what, exactly....? ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JimR

Of course, this is all a matter of taste--and Bart is certainly not alone when he says that he simply enjoys his badger more (many people do), but I just don't. I've tried badger brushes (some of the best and some of the worst) and I just don't like anything about them as much as boar.

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I guess that's what I'm learning most here is that it's as much about preference as the blades we prefer.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JimR

If you don't try it, X-Man, that's no sweat--just remember it's a real option. If you try and don't like it, that's great. Just don't let people tell you one is worse than the other, because it just ain't so.

And, if I do end up with another Omega, I surely won't mind it a bit. L'Ultima Setola loves company!

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It is a very tempting and generous offer which I am weighing.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by JimR

P.S. X-man, "someone like you..." means what, exactly....? ;)

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Dirty hog lovers that's who! :D

X

Vulfix 660 Medium. It is a great small/medium pure badger brush designed for soaps that works great with creams, too.

I have a cheaper vulfix, and it does a great job. I think I have the #405 from classic shaving. I was also going to suggest a shavemac in pure. I've been tempted to get them to make me a custom. I find silvertip too soft. I have the Rooney 1/1 Finest and It's great for face lathering soaps.

Jordan

I have the shavemac and love it. soft but not too floppy.

I have a Rooney 1/1 super and a custom Shavemac 21mm/50mm D01 knot. Both are great with soaps, but the Rooney especially is a soap monster. The Rooney is very dense and has very soft tips, but is much firmer feeling and feels a little on the scrubby side (mine is a little shorter loft than most at 42mm, this may attribute to some of that). Not that this is a bad thing. I actually tend to prefer this type of brush myself.

The 1/1 handle is perfect for face lathering but really not suited for bowl lathering. The custom Shavemac handles you can get whatever you want, but the one I have suits both face lathering and bowl lathering just great.

The custom Shavemac D01 knots are fantastic. Very dense yet soft as a cloud. Very luxurious feeling, yet not floppy at all and can easily handle soaps without a problem. My Shavemac is the bulb shape and I find it to really excel at bowl lathering, but I've been almost predominately face lathering with it no problem. I'm an exclusive face-lathering soap user, and I definitely highly recommend either of these brushes!

I also have a Vulfix 2233 super that is very soft, but way too floppy for my taste. It whips up creams in a bowl great, but struggles with loading soap and in general is no where near the Rooney or Shavemac in terms of performance.